U.S. ethanol production down by 21 percent
Bad news for ethanol lovers. One of the most important ethanol producers in the U.S., ADM, has announced that U.S. production of ethanol was down by 21 percent, from some 12.9 million gallons in mid-late 2008 to 10.2 million right now. The market was up when oil prices were high, plants were built (or planned for) about everywhere and ethanol producers received big subsidies. Then came the lower price of oil, a higher price for corn and the credit crunch - all obvious reasons why producers now face problems with continued expansion. Despite this bad news, ADM also announced that they were set on finishing their new ethanol distilleries, unlike VeraSun. If the country's ethanol producing capacity continues to fall short, it could mean getting more imported ethanol from countries such as Brazil or as a revision of America's ethanol mandate.[Source: CNN]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Yikes 11:17AM (2/06/2009)
Ethanol was a huge knee-jerk reaction to solve oil independance.
Also, flex-fuel vehicle are just corporate welfare and a way for Detroit to by-pass CAFE requirement.
Ethanol from Corn = FAIL
Reply
jpm100 4:48PM (2/06/2009)
This is capacity not consumption. With the lion's share of Ethanol being in the form of E10, this kind of change in consumption seems a stretch.
Reply